Notwithstanding one or two isolated exceptions, it wasn’t until the mid-Sixties that independent female voices really began to be heard within the music industry. The feminist movement naturally coincided with the first signs of genuine musical emancipation. In North America, Joan Baez and Buffy Sainte-Marie emerged through the folk clubs, coffee-houses and college campuses to inspire a generation of wannabe female singers and musicians with their strong, independent mentality and social compassion, while the British scene’s combination of folk song revival and the Beatles-led pop explosion saw record company deals for a new generation of pop-folkies including Marianne Faithfull, Dana Gillespie and Vashti Bunyan.

60 songs, 22 (!) previously unreleased-including duets with Dylan, the Dead, Kris Kristofferson, Donovan, Judy Collins and sister Mimi Farina, etc.-together with a 32-page full-color book packed with interviews and rare pix! From We Shall Overcome through The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down to Diamonds and Rust , her complete career. This is a big ol' box of Baez; certainly more than any casual fan would need. The hits are here ("Diamonds and Rust," "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down"), along with a treasure trove of rare duets (with Kris Kristofferson, Bob Gibson, Donovan, and others) and previously unreleased tracks (including a giddy 1965 concert duet with Bob Dylan on his "Mama, You Been on My Mind"). The depth and breadth of Baez's work–from her early traditional bent ("Silver Dagger") to her fine choices from contemporary writers (Merle Haggard, John Prine)–is well-represented. The striking beauty of her voice is, too.

"Sometimes softly melancholic, as in" You stay ", sometimes cheeky and provocative at the" millionaire ": Henrike Kinnemann is Mimi Crie, and she tells her musical stories from everyday life, whether dream woman, bitchy diva, housewife or abandoned lover - the front woman is not only blessed with a great voice, she also shows great acting talent and makes the stage their playground.

Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music“Aqualung” isn’t only a great album, it’s somehow a feel of live from the early 70’s. Maybe not as ambitious and essential in progressive rock terms as “Thick As A Brick”, but in terms of folk prog an absolute masterpiece concept record, too. I always feel like I am travelling back in the 70’s when I listen to classic tracks like “Locomotive Breath”, “Cross-Eyed Mary”, “Mother Gose” or the title track.

Pongo en tus manos abiertas… is the fourth studio album by the Chilean singer-songwriter Víctor Jara as a soloist, one of the most important representatives of the New Chilean Song. It was recorded during 1969, and published that same year by the record label Jota Jota (later DICAP). The album has been reissued several times and in different countries, changing its name in some versions to that of Te recuerdo Amanda.

Excellent addition to any Prog-Rock music collectionReally good follow up to Heavy Horses despite all the difficulty surrounding the band, and reminds us not only how prolific and accomplished Ian Anderson is, but the impact Jethro Tull’s music has had on everything from folk rock and pop to minstrel metal and symphonic cheese. It doesn’t chart much new territory, the songs resembling classic Anderson shanties more than something thematic, leaner than previous work and though not outstanding like Horses, it’s one of those albums that catches you off-guard with the quality of the material. Thanks, Ian, for being there in hard times and good.

Before Woodstock and Monterey Pop, there was Festival. From 1963 through 1966, Murray Lerner visited the annual Newport Folk Festival to document a thriving, idealistic musical movement as it reached its peak as a popular phenomenon. Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Howlin’ Wolf, Johnny Cash, the Staple Singers, Pete Seeger, Son House, and Peter, Paul and Mary were just a few of the legends who shared the stage at Newport, treating audiences to a range of folk music that encompassed the genre’s roots in blues, country, and gospel as well as its newer flirtations with rock and roll…